


One more time, let's do it again

by timewarp



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-15
Updated: 2015-03-19
Packaged: 2018-03-18 01:03:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3550310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timewarp/pseuds/timewarp
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"My roommate’s boyfriend is staying over so can I please sleep on your floor" college AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Clarke doesn’t hate her roommate. 

Raven is one of the best friends Clarke could ask for. She’s funny, she’s smart, and she’s opinionated. The problem? Raven is also in a committed relationship and well, that relationship leads to Clarke being banished from their dorm room whenever Raven’s boyfriend comes over. 

Tonight happens to be one of those nights. 

Clarke sighs. Normally, it wouldn’t be such a big deal. She usually goes into one of the dorm lounges and studies there for a while until Raven texts her. However, Clarke has a very important exam the next morning, which she absolutely cannot afford to fail. She needs her beauty sleep. 

Clarke gathers up her stuff and knocks on each door on her dorm floor. She knocks on five doors without success and knocks on the sixth. Surprisingly, the door opens. An irritable looking woman her age appears in front of Clarke. The woman rubs her eyes and squints at the light. Her room is pitch black. 

“What?” She asks. 

Clarke is immediately horrified. She forgets that it’s 2AM and people might be sleeping at this hour (or, in Raven’s case, having sex). 

“I am so sorry. Did I wake you up? I can totally go somewhere else.” 

Clarke blushes and turns to walk away. 

“Wait,” the woman says behind her. “What did you want?”

Clarke turns and faces her. She scratches her neck. 

“Erm. My roommate sorta sexiled me and I’m looking for a place to crash tonight.”  
The woman blinks a few times and sighs. 

“…You can stay here tonight,” she mumbles. “Just try and be quiet.” 

Clarke nods. 

“Of course. Thank you so much. I have a really important test tomorrow so it’s kinda essential that I get some sleep tonight. I’m Clarke by the way.”

“Lexa,” she grunts. 

Lexa opens the door wider and gestures for Clarke to come in. Clarke walks into the room and sees that Lexa’s side of the room is completely organized while her roommate’s side is the exact opposite. 

“Where’s your roommate?” Clarke asks. 

Lexa yawns. “With her boyfriend probably. I don’t care.” 

Lexa rummages through her drawers and throws Clarke a pillow and a blanket. 

“You can sleep on the floor. I trust you won’t steal anything?”

Clarke shakes her head. “Of course not. Thank you for letting me crash.” 

Lexa grunts in acknowledgment and burrows into her bed. She turns off the light. 

“Night,” Lexa says.

“Good night.”  
\--  
Clarke is awoken by her phone in the morning. She gets up and yawns. She has an hour before her class starts. She notices that Lexa is gone. Apparently, Lexa is a ninja because she managed to leave without waking up Clarke. 

Clarke sees that she has five text messages all from Raven. Apparently when Clarke never returned back to their room, Raven got concerned. She doesn’t reply because honestly, Raven could’ve been a little more considerate to Clarke’s needs. 

Clarke wants to shower before her class so she goes into her backpack and takes out a notebook. She rips out an unused piece of paper and takes out a pen. She writes a thank you letter because she figures it’s the polite thing to do. The letter reads:  
‘Lexa-  
Thanks for letting me crash here tonight. I owe you one.  
–C’  
She places it on Lexa’s bed (which is immaculately made- seriously did the girl go military school? She’s freakishly neat). Clarke folds the blanket and puts it and the pillow neatly on top of Lexa’s bed, next to the letter. 

Lexa’s roommate never came back so Clarke makes sure that the door locks behind her when she leaves.  
\--  
Two weeks pass without any incidents. 

Clarke hasn’t seen Lexa since that night. It’s kinda weird since the floor has communal bathrooms and showers. Clarke would think that she would have to run into Lexa sometime but she never sees the woman. Clarke half-thinks that Lexa was just a figment of her imagination. 

Two whole weeks pass without Clarke being sexiled until tonight. 

“Seriously?” Clarke groans at Raven. 

“Clarke, I’m sorry. I really am. But I rarely get to see Finn,” Raven says. “I swear that this won’t happen again.” 

Clarke sighs. She knows that Raven misses Finn a lot. They go to different schools so it’s not often that they see each other. Still, Clarke grumbles to herself, maybe Raven could go to Finn’s dorm room for once. 

Clarke gathers up her stuff and goes into her floor’s common room. It’s the middle of the night so it’s completely deserted. Actually, on second glance, it isn’t. She sees a woman on one of the couches, reading a textbook.

“Lexa?” Clarke asks in disbelief. So she does exist.

“Clarke?” Lexa looks startled at her sudden appearance. 

Clarke sits next to her. 

“What are you doing here?” 

Lexa grimaces. “My roommate came back. With her boyfriend.” 

Clarke laughs. “Same here. I love Raven and all but being her roommate is sometimes really annoying.”

Lexa raises an eyebrow. “You are sexiled again?” 

Clarke lets out a light laugh. “You think that the time I crashed into your room was the only time I was sexiled?” She shakes her head. “I’ve been sexiled about half a dozen times and the semester is still young.” 

“Oh.” 

“What about you? This your first time?”

Lexa nods reluctantly and grimaces. “Usually my roommate does it at her boyfriend’s place but…I guess not tonight.”

Clarke laughs. “Welcome to the sexiled club! I’ll be president and you can be VP.” 

Lexa rolls her eyes. “I am never second in charge.” 

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Alright fine. We can both lead. We’ll be co-presidents.” 

Clarke thinks she sees Lexa give a faint smile and she feels internally pleased with herself. 

The two women settle into a comfortable silence. Clarke yawns and reads her textbook. She knows she should really be studying since her professor would doubtless assign them another pop quiz but her eyelids feel heavy and the couch cushions are so comfortable. 

Clarke is awoken by her phone vibrating. She blinks blearily a few times, disoriented, before she realizes where she is. She’s in the common room and oh shit- she’s currently propped against Lexa, their heads together. Clarke sneaks a glance and notices that Lexa is asleep. The two of them must’ve fallen asleep and leaned against each other in their slumber. 

She takes out her phone and sees that she’s gotten a text message from Raven. It’s okay to go back to their room now. 

Lexa stirs next to Clarke. She blinks sleepily and her eyes widen at the position she and Clarke are in. She pulls back immediately and strangely, Clarke misses the physical connection between them. 

“Sorry,” Clarke says. “Raven texted me. It’s okay for me to go back to my room.” 

Lexa nods and avoids Clarke’s eyes. She pulls out her phone and checks for her messages. 

“Same with Anya.” 

“Cool,” Clarke says, feeling self-conscious.  
The two pack their stuff up in an awkward silence. 

“Well, good night,” Clarke says when they leave the common room. 

“Night.” 

Clarke watches Lexa walk down the hallway into her dorm room.  
\--  
Clarke thinks Lexa has been avoiding her. 

She’s seen her a few times around campus and each time, Lexa avoids making eye contact with her. She’s perplexed. The two of them aren’t exactly friends but they’ve established some sort of bond. 

Clarke doesn’t dwell on the matter for long since midterms are coming up and she needs to maintain her grades.  
\--  
It’s a Saturday night and Clarke is in her dorm room, alone. Normally, Clarke would be out to a party or something but she has a killer test on Monday that she really needs to study for. Besides, sometimes she just needs a break from other people. 

She notices an unused bag of popcorn on her desk and decides that now is a perfect time for popcorn. She grabs the bag and her keys and walks to the common room, where the microwave is. When she walks in, she’s surprised to see Lexa there on the couch again. 

“Hey Lexa.” 

Lexa looks up from her textbook. Her face is carefully blank but Clarke thinks she sees a hint of surprise in her features. 

“Clarke.” 

Clarke puts her bag of popcorn in the microwave and puts in the time. She turns around and faces Lexa who has returned to her textbook. 

“What are you doing here?” Clarke asks. 

Lexa sighs. “Anya has some of her friends over and they were being particularly loud. 

“So you’re just going to be here for the rest of the night?”

Lexa shrugs. 

Clarke walks over to Lexa and extends her hand.  
“C’mon,” she says. Lexa knits her eyebrows together. 

“What are you doing?” 

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Come hang out with me in my room. Raven’s spending the weekend at her boyfriend’s school so I have the room to myself the whole weekend.” She waggles her eyebrows. “And I have popcorn.” 

Lexa hesitates.

“I don’t know…” 

“C’mon Lexa, you’d rather spend your Saturday night banished in here?” 

Lexa clenches her jaw. 

“I am not banished.” 

“I was joking, you dummy.” 

The microwave beeps. Clarke looks at Lexa a moment longer before returning to the microwave. She pulls out the bag of popcorn and opens it, the aroma of it spilling into the room. 

“Doesn’t this smell good?” Clarke says, teasing. “You sure you want to miss out on this?” 

Lexa remains impassive. 

Clarke shrugs. “Well, if you change your mind.” She opens the door. 

“Wait.” 

Clarke smirks. Lexa was almost too easy. Clarke turns her head. 

“Yes?” 

Lexa sighs and rolls her eyes. “I’ll come with you.”

Clarke waits while Lexa gathers up her things and leads Lexa to her room. 

“Welcome to my room,” Clarke says. 

Lexa walks inside and looks around. She wrinkles her nose. “How do you live like this?” 

“So it’s a little bit messy, it’s not that bad.”

Lexa raises a skeptical brow. “If you say so.” 

She places her backpack on the ground and looks at Clarke’s side of the room. She notices all of the pencil and charcoal sketches on Clarke’s wall and all over her desk. They’re mostly scenes of nature. Birds, trees, an occasional wolf, lots of sunsets. 

“You drew these?” 

Clarke nods. She jumps onto her bed and opens her bag of popcorn. Lexa hadn’t noticed that Clarke was wearing fuzzy pajama bottoms until now. It’s rather endearing. 

“You can sit on my bed if you want.” Clarke pats the empty space next to her. Lexa complies and gets on the bed. 

“These are really good,” Lexa says, studying one of the drawings on the wall. 

“Thanks. My mom doesn’t approve,” she shrugs, “but it’s what I love doing.” 

“Are you an art major?” 

Clarke shakes her head. “I’m a Biology major but I’m minoring in art. My mom wants me to go to med school.” 

Lexa studies Clarke. “And what do you want to do?” 

Clarke shrugs again. “I’m not sure. I love drawing but it’s hard to make a living doing that.” 

Lexa nods and drops the subject. She can tell it makes Clarke uncomfortable discussing her future. 

Clarke looks at Lexa. “What about you?” She nudges Lexa’s arm with her elbow. “What are you majoring in?” 

“Political science.” 

Clarke lets out an impressive whistle. “Nice. What made you choose that major?” 

“My family is heavily involved in politics. It seemed only natural that I follow in their footsteps.” 

“But is it something you want to do? Or is your family forcing you to do it?”

Lexa gives Clarke a steely look. “Not all of us are unhappy with what our families wish us to do.”  
Clarke puts her hands up. “Alright, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that question.” 

“It’s okay.” 

“So you wanna become a Congresswoman or something like that?” 

Lexa shakes her head. “I see myself as the head of some nonprofit organization, helping others.”

Clarke looks at Lexa for a long time. Lexa looks away and swallows. 

“That’s really great of you,” Clarke says softly after a few moments. Lexa nods, unable to make eye contact with her. 

There’s an awkward silence. 

“Hey, we should watch a movie.”

Lexa shrugs. “I’m not much of a movie fan.” 

Clarke’s jaw drops. “Seriously? But movies are awesome.” 

“Most of them don’t capture my interest.” 

Clarke shakes her head. “You just haven’t been watching the right ones. Have you ever seen The Breakfast Club?”

Lexa shakes her head. 

“What?!” Clarke says. 

“What’s the big deal?” 

Clarke lets out a laugh. “What’s the big deal?” She says in disbelief. “The Breakfast Club is like the most iconic teen movie there is. Have you ever seen any of John Hughes’ stuff?”

Lexa shrugs. 

“Pretty in Pink? Sixteen Candles? Does the name Molly Ringwald mean anything to you?” 

Lexa shakes her head, annoyed at Clarke’s continued disbelief. 

“Alright, I know exactly what we’re watching tonight.” 

When Lexa had imagined her Saturday night, she never would’ve pictured this. She and Clarke are huddled on Clarke’s bed around her laptop, sitting in the pitch-black darkness. The bowl of popcorn is between them. 

“So that guy is Bender. He pretends he’s a really tough guy but he’s actually not.” 

“I think I can figure that out on my own, Clarke.” 

Clarke ignores Lexa’s comment. 

“And that is Molly Ringwald. I used to have such a major a crush on her.” 

Lexa’s eyes widen but she doesn’t say anything. She reaches for the popcorn and her fingers accidentally brush up against Clarke’s. She draws back her hand like she’s been burned. 

“Sorry,” she mutters. 

Clarke doesn’t reply, engrossed in the movie. 

Lexa has to admit that this movie is a lot better than she expected it to be. She finds herself caring about the characters a lot more than she would care to admit. Throughout the movie, she sneaks glances towards Clarke. Clarke not once notices. 

Lexa sighs and shifts around on the bed, making herself more comfortable. Before she knows it, the credits are playing. 

“That’s it?” Lexa finds herself asking out loud. 

Clarke laughs. “I knew you would like it.” 

Lexa bristles. “It was okay.” 

Clarke rolls her eyes. “This is a safe zone. You can admit that you liked the movie.” 

“Alright,” she admits, “It was better than I thought it would be. But the ending is so unsatisfactory.” 

Clarke turns on the light and rests against the wall. “What do mean? The ending is iconic. The shot of Bender with his fist in the air with the song playing? Legendary.” 

“But you never find out what happens to them. Are they friends? Do they ignore each other at school?” Lexa can’t believe that she’s getting this worked up over a movie. 

Clarke looks pensive. “But that’s a part of why the movie is so good. The ending is so ambiguous so people can draw their own conclusions. I’d like to think that they were friends.” 

Lexa looks skeptical but nods. “Maybe.” 

Clarke looks at the clock. “Well, the night is still young. Wanna watch another movie?” 

Lexa nods again. She hopes she doesn’t appear too eager but spending time with Clarke is a lot more fun than she had thought it would be. The grin on Clarke’s face makes it all worth it. 

“You can pick the movie this time,” Clarke says. “Surely there’s a movie you like.” 

There is one but Lexa is embarrassed to admit it. 

“Well,” she says slowly. “There is one.” 

“Okay and which movie is that?” Clarke asks, grinning. 

“It’s embarrassing. It’s one of my favorite movies.” 

“Now I’m really curious. C’mon, I promise I won’t tell.” Clarke looks solemn and holds out her pinkie. “Pinkie swear?” 

Lexa rolls her eyes. “Alright fine. It’s She’s the Man. Happy?” 

Clarke bursts out laughing. Lexa frowns, which only makes Clarke laugh harder. 

“I swear I’m not laughing to make fun of you,” Clarke says in between laughs. She regains her composure and smiles at Lexa. “I love that movie. I just wasn’t expecting you to suggest something like that, that’s all.” 

“You’ve seen it before?”

Clarke waves her off. “Of course. The movie is so quotable.” Clarke sits up a little and puts her hands on her hips and does her best Amanda Bynes impression. “And when I close my eyes, I see you for who you truly are, which is UUUGGG-LAY.” 

Lexa snorts. “I think you missed your calling,” she teases. 

Clarke throws a popcorn kernel at her. “Oh shut up.” 

Clarke finds the movie online and starts playing it on her laptop.  
A few minutes into the movie, Clarke gets a text message. She glances it but doesn’t reply to it. A few seconds later, she gets another text message. And then another one. 

“Ugh, this is getting annoying,” Clarke mutters. She shuts her phone off and throws it onto her desk. 

“What’s going on?” 

Clarke just looks at the laptop screen. “It’s nothing really,” she sighs. “Some of my friends are at a party tonight and they keep pestering me to go.” 

Lexa feels a pang inside of her. “You can go. Don’t let me stop you.” 

Clarke looks at Lexa and shakes her head. “Nah. I’m not in the mood to party tonight. Besides, I’m having fun here with you.” 

Lexa tries to not look so pleased as she tries to pay attention to the movie. It’s hard when Clarke is sitting mere inches away from her. 

They mostly watch the movie in silence with Clarke making a few comments here and there. 

“I had forgotten how good young Channing Tatum looks,” Clarke remarks. 

Lexa shrugs. He’s not her type. 

“Amanda Bynes is also pretty cute?” Clarke ventures. 

Lexa raises an eyebrow at Clarke but doesn’t say anything. 

At some point during the movie, Clarke falls asleep. Lexa had been so engrossed in the movie that it takes her a while to realize that Clarke isn’t watching it anymore. Lexa studies Clarke for a few moments. Clarke looks so peaceful she sleeps, strands of blonde hair everywhere. Lexa mentally shakes herself. She can’t fall down this hole again. 

She closes Clarke’s laptop and puts it away, as well as the popcorn bowl. She moves the blanket so that some of it covers Clarke. She picks up her belongings and quietly leaves the room. 

Lexa goes back into her room and she’s relieved to find that her roommate is asleep-and, thankfully, alone. When she goes to sleep, she dreams of a blonde girl.  
\--  
Clarke wakes up in the middle of the night, disoriented. She’s a little bit sad to find the other woman gone.  
\--  
Clarke sees Lexa a few days later, sitting at a table surrounded by people. She doesn’t speak much but she smiles here and then and even laughs at one point. Even though there doesn’t seem to be any significance of where everyone is seated, Lexa stands out as the clear leader of the group. 

Clarke smiles to herself and doesn’t say anything. 

When she walks away, she gets the feeling that she’s being watched.  
\--  
Clarke is sleeping and in her dreams, there’s a ringing noise that gets louder and louder. She wakes up with a jolt and realizes that the fire alarm is going off. She groans and looks at her clock. 3AM. Great. She sees that Raven is still sleeping. 

“Raven, get up,” Clarke says, while nudging Raven gently. Raven wakes up after a few moments and blinks in confusion. “C’mon, we have to go. Fire alarm.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Raven groans. “What dumbass freshman did this?” 

Clarke shakes her head. “Dunno but we need to get out of here.”

Clarke and Raven put on their shoes, jackets, and grab their keys and ID. 

Clarke squints at the bright light of the hallways. She sees that everyone on their floor is reluctantly lined up at the stairs, waiting to walk down. They’re on the seventh floor so it takes a while to trudge down all of the stairs. Clarke can barely keep her eyes open and the fire alarm just won’t stop ringing. 

They get outside and they shiver in the cold. Clarke regrets not putting on a heavier jacket because she is freezing. Raven has closed her eyes and appears to be dozing off while standing. 

Clarke looks around and sees a familiar face nearby. 

“Lexa?”

Lexa blinks and turns around. “Clarke?” She sees Clarke and walks to where she is. 

“Hey,” Clarke says. 

“Hey.” 

“So how majorly does this suck?”

Lexa nods. “This was the one night I was supposed to sleep well without any projects or essays to worry about,” she mutters. 

Clarke nods and shivers. Lexa notices. She takes off her jacket and hands it to Clarke.

“Here,” she says. 

Clarke stares at Lexa, dumbfounded. She shakes her head. 

“No, you keep it.” 

Lexa rolls her eyes. “You’re freezing. Take it.” 

“Won’t you be cold?” 

Lexa shakes her head and sports a faint smile. “I’m used to worse.”

Clarke accepts it gratefully and shrugs it over her shoulders. “Thanks.” 

Now that Lexa is up close, Clarke makes out that she’s not wearing any makeup. She looks nice, younger even. Usually she’s intimidating to look at but now, she just looks like a young college student Clarke’s age. It’s nice seeing her like this.

Lexa frowns. “Do I have something on my face?”

Clarke blushes at being caught and just shakes her head. “No, I was just thinking.” 

“Oh.” Lexa looks away.

Their RA walks to the front of the shivering crowd. “Okay everyone. It’s safe to go back in.” 

Someone yelled out, “What caused the alarm?” 

The RA shakes their head. “Someone burned their popcorn.” Everyone collectively groans out loud. 

Clarke looks away from Lexa and nudges Raven. 

“Raven, we can go up.” 

Raven doesn’t open her eyes. “Can’t move. Too tired.” 

Clarke looks at Lexa, exasperated. “Can you help me with Raven?” 

Lexa nods, amused. Clarke takes one of Raven’s arms and Lexa takes the other. 

“Okay Raven, we’re walking now.” 

Raven only grunts in reply. 

“Sorry about this,” Clarke says, “She’s pulled a lot of all-nighters lately because she has a huge engineering project due soon.” 

Lexa nods. “I have some friends in her program so I understand.” 

They walk slowly, not wanting to drop Raven. Clarke guides them up the stairs, which proves to be tricky but manageable somehow. 

Once they’re on the seventh floor, they walk to Clarke and Raven’s room. Clarke fumbles with the lock, only able to use one hand. Finally, the lock opens and she pushes the door. Lexa and Clarke gently guide Raven to her bed where she immediately falls on top of it and curls into a ball. 

Clarke laughs and shakes her head. She really does love Raven even though she can be a massive pain in the butt. 

“Your roommate is certainly an amusing one,” Lexa remarks, careful to whisper. 

“You have no idea.” 

They look at each other for a few seconds and don’t say anything. Lexa is half covered in the shadows, which makes her look both beautiful and dangerous for some reason. 

“Well, I should head back and get some sleep,” Lexa says after a beat. She licks her lips. 

Clarke nods. Lexa heads out of the door but pauses in the doorway. 

“Did you forget something?” 

“Actually yeah, you’re still wearing my jacket.” 

“Oh, right,” Clarke says, flustered. “Sorry.” 

“It’s fine, it’s just that my keys are in there.” 

“Right, of course.” She takes off the jacket and hands it back to Lexa. Their fingers brush against each other.

“Well… goodnight.” Lexa says. 

“Good night Lexa.” Lexa smiles a little and leaves. She shuts the door carefully after her.

“You guys need to get a room,” Raven mumbles under the covers. 

“Just go to sleep Raven.” 

Raven just laughs and laughs.


	2. Chapter 2

Clarke wakes up too late one day and decides fuck it. She walks out into the dorm hallway in just her robe, hair tousled up, and holding her shower caddy. She looks like pure shit. 

She passes by Lexa in the hallway who looks immaculate. Clarke waves and Lexa gives her a small smirk in return. 

Life really isn’t fair, Clarke thinks.  
\--  
Clarke is in her college’s café, working on her homework. She likes it here, she decides. She can see the campus from the café windows and watch people by in between homework problems. Plus, studying in the library or in her dorm room is just depressing. 

She taps her pen against her notebook and sighs. She looks out the window and sees Lexa walk by. Clarke waves and Lexa notices. She gives Clarke a nod in recognition and walks inside the café. She walks up next to where Clarke is sitting.

“Hey Lexa,” Clarke greets.

“Hello Clarke. What are you doing?” 

Clarke shows Lexa her notebook. “Homework.” Clarke scrunches up her nose in annoyance. Lexa quirks up her lips in amusement. “It’s not going too well.” 

“Hm. You want some coffee? It might help.” 

Clarke widens her eyes and grins. “Definitely. It’s been such a long time since I’ve had coffee.”

“And by a long time you mean?”

“Four hours ago.”

Lexa rolls her eyes but she still keeps her small smile. 

“Sounds pretty dire. What do you take with your coffee?”  
“No cream, two sugars.” 

Lexa nods. “I’ll be right back.” 

Lexa returns a few minutes later with two coffee cups. She sits in the empty seat next to Clarke. She hands Clarke her coffee and takes a sip out of her own cup. Clarke takes out her wallet.

“How much do I owe you?” 

Lexa waves her off. “You don’t owe me anything.” 

Clarke opens her mouth to protest. “But-“ 

“The pleasure of your company will be more than enough compensation.”

Oh.

Clarke puts away her wallet and smirks. “Oh really?” 

Lexa quirks up an eyebrow. “Don’t let that comment get to your head, Clarke.” 

“Wouldn’t dare dream it.” Clarke takes a sip of coffee.

They sit and talk for god knows how long before Lexa says that she has to go do homework. Clarke nods glumly, thinking of all the homework she’s neglected. Clarke checks her watch and is startled to find out that they’ve talked for close to two hours. She watches Lexa walk out of the café and watches her disappear into the distance. Clarke eyes the empty seat next to her.  
\--  
Clarke is in her room, studying for a quiz she has the next day. She hears a knock on the door and internally groans. This means she has to move from her comfortable spot. She gets up from her desk and answers the door. She’s surprised to see that it’s Lexa. 

“Hey,” Lexa says.

“Hey, what’s up?” Clarke asks, propped against the door. 

Lexa shifts uncomfortably. 

“Can I hang out here? Anya and her boyfriend want some private time.” 

Clarke laughs and opens the door wide enough for Lexa to go through. Lexa walks into her room and eyes the mess that Clarke and Raven have made. 

“We really need to stop meeting this way,” Clarke says. 

“Hm?”

“You know, hanging out because our roommates are doing stuff.” 

Lexa scoffs. “It’s unbelievable.” 

Clarke shrugs. “There is one good thing out of all this.” 

Lexa quirks up an eyebrow. “And what is that?”

Clarke smiles. “I get to hang out with you.” 

“Hmph,” Lexa replies but she looks pleased nonetheless. 

“You can sit on my bed if you want,” Clarke nods her head towards the bed. Lexa complies and puts her backpack next to her. Clarke sits back on her desk. 

“Here,” Clarke says, handing Lexa her flash cards. “You can help me study.” 

Lexa accepts the cards and looks at them. She makes a face. “This looks awful.” 

Clarke rolls her eyes and sighs. “Tell me about it. I have to memorize the entire human heart and its functions by tomorrow.” 

Lexa shakes her head but pulls out a card. 

“What is the buffy coat?” 

“It’s what the vampire slayer wears when she’s cold.” 

Lexa gives out a low laugh. “Very amusing.” 

Clarke is pleased that she’s finally made Lexa laugh. “In case you don’t know, Buffy is a vampire slayer and she-“ 

Lexa rolls her eyes. “I know who Buffy the vampire slayer is. I’m not completely in the dark when it comes to pop culture.” 

Clarke widens her eyes. “You’ve seen Buffy?” 

Lexa raises her eyebrows at Clarke. “I thought we were supposed to be studying for your quiz?” Clarke sighs. Lexa did have a point. “And yes, I’ve seen Buffy.” 

They’re in the middle of an argument about Buffy and Faith when Raven walks in.  
“Hey Clarke,” Raven greets. She sees Lexa and raises a brow. “Oh, hey.” 

“Raven, this is Lexa. Lexa, Raven. She’s the one who helped me drag your sorry butt here during the fire alarm.” 

Raven laughs. “Oh right, I’d forgotten about that. Nice to meet you, Lexa.” 

“Likewise, Raven.” Lexa replies. 

“We were just talking about Buffy and Faith,” Clarke says. 

Raven grins. “Oh man, those two had so much sexual tension.” 

Lexa turns to Clarke. “See? She agrees with me.” 

“Wait, what? You didn’t ship them?” Raven asks in disbelief. 

“But Faith betrayed her!” 

Raven groans. “Oh come on, didn’t everyone betray Buffy at some point or another?” 

“Well, you do have a point there,” Clarke concedes. 

“Ah Clarke, Clarke, Clarke,” Raven says, shaking her head.

“So, who did you want Buffy with then?” Lexa asks. 

“Spike obviously.” 

Lexa raises her eyebrows. “And you complained about Faith betraying Buffy?” 

Clarke scrunches up her nose. “Oh shut up. I still like them.” 

Raven rolls her eyes. “Ignore her Lexa, she’s crazy.” 

Lexa nods solemnly. “Agreed.” 

“Hey!” Clarke says, indignant but it’s drowned over Raven and Lexa’s laughter. 

Clarke doesn’t believe it but somehow or another, the three of them have ended up on her bed, huddled around her laptop watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and eating popcorn. 

“Eliza Dushku is so friggin’ hot man,” Raven comments. 

Lexa nods. “I used to have a huge crush on her.” 

“Agreed,” Clarke says.  
\--  
One morning, Clarke wakes up with a start. She breathes out heavily as she regains her bearings. It’s still dark in her dorm room. She glances at her alarm clock. 5:30 AM. Great. 

Clarke looks over to where Raven is still sleeping, mouth opening and drooling slightly. 

Clarke tries to go back to sleep but she is too restless to do so. She really doesn’t want to relive the nightmare she just had. 

Clarke grabs her things and puts on a jacket. She finds herself outside, walking around her school’s expansive campus. There’s stillness in the air Clarke has never experienced in all of her time at school. Usually the campus is overflowing with students, their laughter and chatter can be heard from far away. Now it’s completely quiet. Surprisingly, there are a few people around, mostly doing the walk of shame back to their dorm rooms. 

Normally, Clarke is so not a morning person but she finds comfort in how peaceful the early morning can be. All of a sudden, she can hear the pitter patter of feet running behind her. 

“Clarke!” 

She turns around and is surprised to see a very sweaty Lexa behind her. Lexa is dressed in a white tank top and shorts with her hair pulled back. Lexa slows her pace into a jog until she stops right by Clarke. She pulls an ear bud out of her ear. 

“Hey,” Lexa says, a bit breathless. “What are you doing here?” 

“I couldn’t sleep,” Clarke shrugs. “Do you usually go running this early?” 

Lexa nods. “I like the mornings. It’s quiet and it allows me to clear my head.” 

Clarke nods back. “Makes sense.” She doesn’t know what else to say to Lexa. The remnants of her nightmare still haunt her thoughts. 

Lexa gives her a strange look, as if she can read Clarke’s mind. “Are you okay?”

Clarke waves her off. “I’m fine, the nightmare I had was just a bit intense, that’s all.” 

Lexa bites her lip and seems to be considering something. 

“Would you like to get breakfast with me?”  
Clarke is taken aback. She hadn’t expected that at all. It’s a nice surprise though.

“Sure, that sounds great.” 

Lexa gives her a faint smile. 

“Alright, I have to shower first but meet you at the café in an hour?” 

Clarke nods. “Sounds great,” she says honestly. 

“Excellent. I’ll see you soon.” 

And with that, Lexa jogs off. Clarke watches her disappear around the corner.  
\--  
Forty five minutes pass and Clarke figures she might as well head over to her school’s café now. She’s surprised to see that Lexa has beaten her there. She gives Lexa a small wave and joins her at a table by the window. Lexa hands her a cup of coffee, which Clarke accepts gratefully. 

“It’s no cream, two sugars right?” 

Clarke nods and smiles. “You remembered. Thank you.” 

Lexa nods and averts eye contact. Clarke notices that her cheeks have turned pink. Clarke takes a sip of her coffee and gives a happy hum. This is exactly what she needed. 

“Did you want to talk about what was bothering you?” Lexa asks. 

Clarke stares out of the window and doesn’t reply for a few moments. 

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Lexa clarifies after Clarke had been silent for a while. 

Clarke shakes her head. “I do want to talk about it. It’s hard.” She pauses. “A few months ago, my father was killed. I later found out that my mother was responsible for his death.”

Clarke looks at Lexa and sees that her eyes have widened but she doesn’t say anything, waiting for Clarke to go on. 

Clarke swallows. “I sometimes have nightmares about his death. In some of my dreams, I’m so close to saving him but I’m always too late.” 

Lexa hesitantly puts her hands on top of Clarke’s.

“That’s terrible,” she murmurs. “I’m sorry for your loss.” 

Clarke gives her a sad smile. “It’s okay. It’s not too bad now. Anyways, I’m studying at the school he went to for underground. He would’ve been happy about that.” 

Lexa nods resolutely. “I am certain that your father would be very proud of you if he was still alive.” 

Clarke shifts her hand so that she squeezes Lexa’s. Lexa looks at their joined hands but doesn’t pull back. 

After a few moments of them sitting in silence, Lexa breaks the silence. 

“You are not the only one who has suffered the loss of a loved one,” Lexa swallows thickly. “A few years ago, my girlfriend was killed.” 

Clarke’s mouth opens, horrified. 

“I am so sorry Lexa.” She squeezes Lexa’s hand comfortingly. 

Lexa nods and exhales. She closes her eyes.

“Her name was Costia and she was beautiful. She was killed by a drunk driver. They told me that she was still alive afterwards. She died waiting for the ambulance. A traffic jam had delayed it from getting to her in time.” 

Clarke is stunned. She doesn’t know what she possibly can say to make Lexa feel better. 

“What was she like?” 

Lexa gives Clarke a strange look. Clarke fears that perhaps she’s said the wrong thing. 

“No one has ever asked me that. Usually people tell me their condolences and they change the subject.” 

“I would like to know. She sounds like she was an amazing person.” 

Lexa nods. “She was. She was the happiest and carefree person I ever met. She could make total strangers fall in love after a conversation with her. She was… she was kind and nurturing. She was wonderful.” 

Clarke nods and places her other hand on top of Lexa’s. “She sounds like an incredible person.” 

Lexa nods and gives Clarke a half smile. “It took me a long time to get over her death but eventually, I realized that she would’ve wanted me to move on with my life.” 

Clarke nods but doesn’t say anything. The two of them sit like that for a while in silence, hands intertwined.  
\--  
Clarke finds herself at a party. Midterms are finally over so she figures she deserves a break. She’s nursing her second drink when she spots Bellamy. She waves and he gives out a loud whoop. He clambers over the crowd to where she’s standing. 

Bellamy wraps his arm around Clark’s shoulder. 

“Clarke!” He shouts. “It’s been way too long since you came out with us.” 

Clarke nudges him. “Some of us have to worry about our grades.” 

“Hey! I totally care about my grades,” he says, mock-affronted. 

Clarke laughs. “Yeah, yeah.” She looks around at the crowd of people in the frat house they’re in. “You see any cute girls tonight?” 

Bellamy shakes his head. “Excluding you? Nah but the night is still young.” 

Clarke rolls her eyes. “You flatter me, Blake.” His arm is still around her shoulder but she doesn’t mind. Bellamy gets handsy whenever he’s had too many drinks.

“O!” Bellamy yells. “Oy, O! Over here!” 

Clarke sees Octavia across the hall and they both wave. Octavia weaves through the crowd to where she and Bellamy are. 

“Hey guys,” Octavia says, a little bit breathless. “Lexa’s with me too.” 

Clarke widens her eyes when she sees Lexa appear from behind Octavia. 

“Hey Lexa,” Clarke smiles. 

Lexa doesn’t smile. She looks from Clarke to Bellamy to Clarke again. 

“Hey,” she says, awkward. 

Bellamy points at her. “You look like you need a drink. I’ll get you one.” He releases his arm and disappears into the crowd before Lexa can protest. 

Octavia looks at the crowd behind Clarke and waves at someone.  
“Sorry,” she says to Clarke. “I see Lincoln so I’m going to say hi.” She squeezes Clarke’s arm a little before rushing off to greet Lincoln. 

“Guess it’s just you and me now,” Clarke says to Lexa. 

“Looks like it.” 

Lexa looks uncomfortable. Clarke cocks her head. 

“Are you okay?” 

Lexa nods and swallows. “I just need a drink and I’ll be fine.” 

Clarke opens her mouth to say something but Bellamy’s spotted them and is holding three cups. 

“Ladies,” he yells. He looks around. “Where’d Octavia go?” He hands Lexa and Clarke their drinks. 

“She saw Lincoln,” Clarke replies. Bellamy grimaces and takes a giant gulp out of his drink. “Be nice Bellamy,” Clarke warns. “She really likes this guy.” 

Bellamy wrinkles his nose. “I know but it doesn’t mean I have to like it. She’s my baby sister you know? I gotta watch out for her.” 

He spots someone. He leans over and whispers in Clarke’s ear. “Hey, I see Echo. I’m gonna talk to her. We’ll talk later?”

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Go ahead.” Bellamy nods and disappears into the crowd once again. 

Clarke looks at Lexa. “What do you say we go somewhere quieter?”

Lexa shrugs. Clarke notices that she’s already downed her drink. They stop into the kitchen to get another drink before going out in the balcony where it’s miraculously deserted. 

Clarke leans her arms against the railing and looks out. They can see most of the campus from the balcony. The moon is out and the stars are bright. She inhales and lets out a contented sigh. She glances over at Lexa and sees that the other woman has copied her stance. 

“Let’s make a toast,” Clarke proclaims. 

“To what?” 

Clarke thinks. “A toast to the end of midterms.” 

They clink their red cups against each other and drink. 

Clarke is definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol by now. She blinks a few times. 

“So,” she says, while facing Lexa. “What made you come out here tonight? I didn’t take you for the partying type.” 

Lexa shrugs. “I needed a drink.” 

Clarke laughs louder than she had intended to. “I hear that. Thing’s’ve been so stressful lately.” 

She notices that Lexa is staring at her. She bites her lip. “So Lexa, what’s been on your mind?” 

“Not much,” Lexa says, noncommittal. Lexa averts her eyes away from Clarke. There’s an unspoken tension from her. 

“Hey, what’s the matter?” Clarke asks, placing an arm on her shoulder. Lexa jerks it away, still refusing to make eye contact. Clarke shifts so that her body is right next to Lexa’s body. “Lexa, answer me. Please?”

“It’s nothing,” Lexa shakes her head. “It’s stupid.” 

“Hey, look at me please?” Lexa turns her head so that her face is inches away from Clarke’s. “Did I do something wrong?” 

“No, you didn’t do anything. Just drop it.” 

“Not until you tell me what’s up.”

Lexa doesn’t say anything and Clarke lets out a frustrated sigh. 

“I swear, you’re the most confusing girl I know. One minute you let your defenses down and you’re a lot of fun to be around. The next, you have your walls up and you won’t let anyone in.” 

Lexa clenches her jaw. “Sorry that I can’t be an open book like you.” 

Clarke sighs. There’s a loud cheering noise that comes from inside and she can hear Bellamy hollering and whooping. 

“It sounds like Bellamy is having a better time here tonight than I am,” she says wryly. “He’s been eyeing this girl for a while. Echo I think is her name. I saw her around so.” Clarke gulps down the rest of her drink and tosses the cup aside. “He won’t shut up about her.” 

Clarke notices Lexa eyeing her with a curious expression. She feels self-conscious all of a sudden. 

“What? Do I have something on my face?” Clarke asks. 

“You root for Bellamy to get with another girl?”

Clarke shrugs. “Why not? He’s one of my best friends so he deserves to be happy.” 

“So he isn’t your boyfriend?”

Clarke gives out a loud laugh. “Oh gods no,” she says in between laughter. “I mean, we totally tried it once but we found out that we were better off as friends.” 

“Oh.” 

Clarke smiles and shakes her head. Silly Lexa, she thinks. It takes her a few moments but comprehension dawns on her. 

“Wait a minute, was that why you were mad? You were jealous?” 

Lexa scoffs and looks away. “What? Of course not. Don’t be silly.” 

Clarke grins and gets closer to Lexa. “You were jealous. You thought me and Bellamy were dating.” 

Lexa backs away and swallows. 

“You are ridiculous,” she declares. “Why should I care who you are or aren’t dating?” Her words ring hollow to Clarke. 

Clarke shrugs and staggers a bit. She places a hand on the railing to keep herself steady. 

“Suit yourself,” she mumbles. “I’m gonna get more to drink.” 

She walks away and Lexa doesn’t follow.  
\--  
Clarke wakes up the next day with a headache and a bitter aftertaste in her mouth.  
\--  
Clarke once again sits in her hall’s common room. Once again, she has managed to been sexiled. It’s not too bad tonight. She has Netflix and she’s munching on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Life is grand. 

She hasn’t heard from Lexa since the party two nights ago. Whatever. 

She’s halfway through an episode of Parks & Rec when Lexa walks into the common room. 

“Hey,” Lexa says, surprised to see Clarke. 

“Hey,” Clarke replies coolly. 

Lexa’s face is blank but Clarke has hung out with her long enough to tell the subtle differences on her face. Lexa is definitely feeling embarrassed right now. A few moments pass by in awkward silence. Lexa looks like she’s dying to say something but doesn’t know how to say it. 

“Sexiled again?” 

Clarke nods. “Yep.” 

“Oh.” 

This is easily one of the most awkward conversations she’s ever had. 

“I want to apologize for my behavior on Friday night. It was immature of me.” 

Clarke laughs. “You don’t have to speak so formally, you know.” 

Lexa sighs. “I’m sorry, okay?” 

Clarke nods and gives her a small smile. “Cool, thanks.” 

Lexa bites her lip. “Would you like to hang out in my room? Anya isn’t there.” 

Clarke closes her laptop and tucks it under her arm. “Lead the way.” 

Lexa leads her to her room silently. Once they’re in the room, Clarke looks around. 

“So what d’you wanna do?” 

Lexa looks at Clarke and closes the distance between them. She puts a hand on Clarke’s cheek and kisses her. Clarke gives a surprised gasp but doesn’t push Lexa away. Clarke deepens the kiss and Lexa lets out a breathy gasp. 

They pull apart and they rest their foreheads against each other. 

“Took you long enough,” Clarke teases. 

Lexa smiles and rolls her eyes. “So I guess that means you liked it?”

“Hmm, I dunno. I might need to try that again to see if I liked it or not.” 

Lexa gives out a low laugh. “Dork.” 

“Only around you.” 

This time, Clarke is the one who initiates the kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoyed reading this. It was a lot of fun to write.

**Author's Note:**

> Any feedback is welcome. Come talk over at my tumblr: releasekrakens


End file.
